Admiral on Deck
by Mrs. Sherlock Holmes
Summary: "Thanks, I owe you one" Shepard said, her heart lurching in her chest. "More than one" Anderson muttered. This will be a ME3 storyline, FemShep/Shanderson fic for your reading pleasure. Starting with the opening scenes from ME3 as the Reaper descends on Vancouver during Shepard's meeting with the Council. Because Admirals need love too.
1. Chapter 1

_**Hello ME Fans! This will be a ME3 storyline, FemShep/Shanderson fic for your reading pleasure. Starting with the opening scenes from ME3 as the Reaper descends on Vancouver during Shepard's meeting with the Council. There will be some deviations from canon as the story goes on, the main one being that Anderson doesn't stay on Earth. Enjoy! Read and review please. I'm always open to suggestions.**_

"Move! Run, run, run!" Erynn Shepherd managed to scream seconds before the blast from the Reaper ship destroyed the Alliance Council Chambers. She was launched into the air and crashed painfully into the deck, her ears ringing and her eyes sliding out of focus. From out of the blur a strong hand reached down and pulled her to her feet.

"Shepard, come on get up!" Admiral David Anderson yelled over the sounds of shrieking metal and the screams of the dying. He pressed an M-3 Predator pistol into her hand and said "Here take this, we've got to get moving."

They jogged across to the new gaping hole in the side of the building and looked out on the sheer horror of the scene before them. Erynn watched in outraged silence as the Reaper ship descended on Vancouver, vaguely aware of Anderson trying to raise the Normandy on comms.

"This is Admiral Anderson, report in, anyone. Major Alenko is that you?"

This was what Shepard had been warning the Alliance about for years and now it was too late. The Reapers were on Earth.

"Come on Shepard, Kaiden is headed to the Normandy. They'll pick us up if we can make it to the spaceport."

Erynn jogged after Anderson as he headed down the metal catwalk on the building's exterior and up an access ladder to the roof. A group of Husks appeared, crawling up the wall, and were quickly dispatched by the Predator. Shepard was grappling with a second group of the cybernetic zombies on a lower balcony when a laser blast from the Reaper shattered the windows of the adjacent room. Anderson ducked into the now open structure and began weaving among the burning rubble trying to find a way through.

"This is a goddamn mess." Anderson cursed as he shifted a large metal cabinet to crawl through into the next room. "Every minute these machines are here thousands of people die. We've got to get to the Citadel."

Erynn hated running from a fight, but Anderson was right. They needed help. The only thing to do was to escape on the Normandy and gather a larger force to combat the Reapers. As they inched their way along a narrow ledge high above the ground Erynn was almost thrown off the building by a sudden tremor, but Anderson snatched her backwards by her uniform collar.

"Gotcha!" he said, pulling her back to relative safety, and squeezing her hand with a reassuring grip.

"Thanks" Shepard gasped, her heart lurching in her chest "I owe you one."

"More than one" Anderson muttered as they shuffled along the rest of the ledge and onto another balcony.

Kaiden's voice crackled to life on the comms, announcing that they had made it to the Normandy, but were taking heavy fire. An Alliance ship exploding above them caused the roof they were standing on to collapse. Erynn and Anderson slid down 60 feet of sheet metal and tumbled to a stop in a tangle of arms, legs and guns right at the feet of a swarm of Reaper-mutated Cannibals. They dove behind a metal barrier and tried to hold off the hoard, but it was quickly becoming apparent that they were going to be overrun. As Erynn loaded her last 15 round clip she was suddenly thrown into shadow by a massive shape roaring overhead.

"The cavalry's here!" Joker's voice broke loud and clear over comms, and it was the most beautiful sound Shepard had ever heard as the Normandy banked left and blasted the remaining Cannibals into oblivion. Erynn and Anderson made one last sprint up a metal incline and were about to board the shuttle bay ramp when Shepard felt another concussive blast push her back away from her ship and safety. She was thrown to the ground and the last thing she saw before her vision went black was Anderson's hand reaching back for her.

Erynn woke with a massive headache, somewhat surprised to find herself in the Normandy's sick bay. Dr Chakwas leaned over and poked at her, shining a light in her eyes, and tutted over a large number of painful injuries that appeared to be present all over Shepard's body.

"Well, you're awake now." Chakwas said, rather obviously.

"Can I change my mind abut that doc?" Erynn groaned, squinting up at the bright medical lights.

"I think that could definitely be arranged, but I imagine the Admiral wants to have a brief word before I put you back out. He's been very worried about you."

The sickbay door hissed open and Admiral Anderson stood in the doorway. He was in a clean uniform, but otherwise he looked like hell. He had cuts and bruises all over his face and the hair was mostly gone from the left side of his head. Her expression must have betrayed her feelings of horror because he said, "You don't look so hot yourself Shepard." as he placed a hand gently on her shoulder.

"I'm sorry Admiral…" she coughed, and the movement caused renewed stabs of pain to shoot through her abdomen.

"Shh" he whispered brushing her hair back from her face. "Just rest for now, we have a lot to discuss when you are back on your feet." He nodded to Chakwas who injected a new dose of sedative into Erynn's arm, and once again her world went black.

"That's another one you owe me Shepard." She heard him whisper in the dark.


	2. Chapter 2

As soon as she was able to fight her way free of Dr. Chakwas and her medical implements, Erynn Shepard left sickbay. Out of habit she went straight to the captain's cabin, forgetting that she wasn't technically a member of the Alliance Navy anymore. She found clean uniforms in her size in the closet, and the few, small personal belongings she had in her possession when the Reaper attack started arranged on the desk. She supposed the crew had taken it upon themselves to make her feel at home.

Several minutes later, showered and dressed, Erynn ran her fingers along the cool glass of the empty fish tank and tried recall the good memories that happened in this space, but somehow those stolen moments always seemed to come with a heavy price to be paid later. She sighed and promised herself that she wouldn't dwell on the past while there was so much work to be done. She left the cabin and its ghosts behind and descended to the CIC.

As Shepard entered the Command Information Center, she saw Major Kaiden Alenko and Admiral Anderson standing with their backs to her at one of the consoles. Both turned as Specialist Traynor announced her presence on deck, Kaiden with a look that warned of mixed feelings. She hadn't seen him since the attack on Horizon, and their meeting then had not exactly been cordial.

Salutes and handshakes were exchanged, and Kaiden immediately turned back to the console to consult with another crew member, leaving Shepard in the dark about his attitude towards her.

Anderson gave Erynn an appraising look and said, "Well, I've seen you look worse."

"Me too." Erynn tugged at the hem of her tunic, self-consciously smoothing her uniform.

"Still fits after six months in storage?" he raised a brow in mock surprise. "I would have thought civilian life would have been less kind."

She repressed a snort and then realized that, as the ranking officer on board, Anderson should have her cabin.

"I'll have my things moved out of the captain's cabin for you." Shepard said "I don't think anyone was planning on having an Admiral on board when they assigned quarters. Hell, I'm not even active military."

Anderson shook his head. "No need for that, I'm bunking in Port Observation. The Normandy is yours." He stepped forward and pressed something into her hand. When she looked down, she saw her old Alliance military dog tags. "Consider yourself reinstated, Commander." Shepard saw, for a fraction of a second, a bright spark of pride in his eyes, and had to fight back a hiccup of emotion. Anderson had always had faith and pride in her, even when it seemed like everyone else in the Galaxy had their doubts.

"Thank you, Sir." She whispered, hanging the tags around her neck and tucking them beneath her tunic. He clasped her shoulder firmly and then turned back to the command console.

"While you were out, we received an emergency message from Admiral Hackett." Anderson said, bringing up the brief and heavily distorted vid feed of Hackett along with the image of Mars on the galaxy map. "We're on our way to the Mars to the Prothian Archives to try to retrieve Dr. Liara T'soni and some research that may help us defeat the reapers." Anderson continued. "We have no idea what we are looking for exactly, but it may be our only hope to stopping them."

Shepard nodded, "I'll grab my gear."

The red glow of the Kodiak shuttle's cargo lights seemed to be absorbed into the surface of Shepard's N7 armor as they bounced through the Martian atmosphere. She braced a hand on the bulkhead, her helmet clutched in the other. Next to her, Kaiden Alenko conducted one more check of his weapons and then sat motionless on the jump seat, head bowed.

"We're almost there" James Vega called over his shoulder as they continued their decent. They had been unable to raise anyone at the archives, EDI reported that the complex seemed to be online, but an eerie silence met their transmissions. As they landed, Vega reported that there was a massive storm heading their way.

"How long till it hits?" Shepard asked, securing her helmet and checking life-support systems.

"Half hour tops, after that we're going to have difficulty keeping up comms with the Normandy" He switched off the power to the engines and grabbed his own weapons.

"Understood"

Shepard stepped out of the opening hatch and onto the dusty red surface of Mars and moved quickly towards the archives, followed by Vega and Alenko,

High above them on the Normandy Admiral David Anderson stood in the CIC clutching the edge of his console, straining to hear their ever-weakening transmissions. _Come on Shepard. _He thought to himself. _Find our hope._

As they approached the archive complex, they could see what appeared to be several assault troopers executing archive workers. They rushed forward to intervene, but it was too late. They eliminated the troopers, but all the workers were dead already. Kaiden eyed the Cerberus emblems on the troopers' armor and shifted his gaze to Erynn.

"What's Cerberus doing here on Mars?"

"Good question." Shepard replied

"You don't know?" Kaiden asked in a less than respectful tone.

"I'm not with them anymore Kaiden, if that's what you're asking."

"It's just a bit convenient…"

"Hey! I don't work for them anymore!" It was a harsh tone, and she knew Kaiden was asking what were, in his mind, fair questions, but she needed to return focus to the mission. Lieutenant Vega came to her aid by bringing up the fact that Shepard had been under constant surveillance since returning to Earth and had no way to be in contact with Cerberus. Kaiden grudgingly held his argument as they entered the archive building. The first room they entered seemed deserted, but a moment later that appearance was broken by the sound of buckling metal in the duct work overhead. Dr. Liara T'soni burst from a ventilation grate, closely pursued by two Cerberus troopers. She hit the floor in a crouch and turned, dispatching the soldiers with her biotic Lift power and a few, well placed shots from an M-3 Predator.

"Shepard, thank the Goddess you're alive"

"It's good to see you Liara, but we don't have time for reunions. Hackett sent us."

Liara nodded, "I've discovered plans for a Prothean device in the archives. One that could wipe out the reapers." She pointed out an observation window towards another building. "The archives are just across that tramway. If Cerberus hasn't gotten there first."


	3. Chapter 3

Shepard stood astounded as the image of the Illusive Man ranted about harnessing the power of the Reapers. He was clearly insane if he thought he could control them.

Liara tapped frantically at the console trying to retrieve the data on the Prothean device. "The Data. It's not here!" she shouted at Shepard. "It's being erased!"

The Illusive Man's parting words faded with his holographic image. "Don't interfere with my plans Shepard. I won't warn you again."

"Damn it!" Erynn cursed "How is he doing it?"

Liara was still tapping at the console. "It's local, someone's uploading the information."

"Hey!" Kaiden yelled from across the room, pointing his rifle at the woman who was accessing another console hidden in an alcove. "Step away from the console, Now!"

The woman lashed out with a lightning fast kick to Kaiden's chest, smashing the data console with a fist before fleeing out of an airlock.

Shepard and Kaiden were close behind, running full tilt across the roof of the facility when a Cerberus shuttle flew into view.

"She's getting away!" Erynn yelled as the woman leapt on to the shuttle. "Damn it, James…Normandy…Anybody?"

"I got this one!" James yelled over comms as he rammed the Kodiak into the side of the Cerberus shuttle, causing it to crash back onto the roof with a fiery explosion knocking them all to the ground.

Shepard struggled to her feet and Kaiden was helping a limping Liara towards the Kodiak when the woman emerged from the wreckage of the shuttle. Kaiden fired his pistol at her, but she rushed him with her inhuman speed, snatching his weapon out of his hand and lifting him from the ground with no effort.

Dr. Eva Core' tapped at her comms and asked "Orders?"

The Illusive Man paused for only a moment before responding. "Finish him"

Before anyone could intervene, she slammed Kaiden into the side of the shuttle and released his body to crumple lifelessly to the ground. Turning, she charged at Shepard, taking nearly a full clip of pistol fire before falling to the deck.

"Grab that thing and bring it with us." Shepard ordered James as she ran towards Kaiden.

"Shepard we've got Reaper signatures in orbit!" Joker yelled over comms as the Normandy pulled alongside. Erynn hoisted Kaiden onto her shoulders and ran to join the others on the shuttle bay ramp.

Anderson stood there, covering their retreat with a rifle, and afterwards followed the team into sickbay.

Erynn laid Kaiden down on one of the treatment beds and stood over him for a moment of shocked silence before she was snapped back to reality by Liara.

"The Citadel is our best chance Shepard." She urged "We can find help there."

"Get us to the Citadel Joker."

"Roger that."

Erynn gave Kaiden's shoulder a gentle squeeze before she turned away. Seeing the body of Dr. Eva Core' on the opposite bed, she added to Liara. "See what your and EDI can learn from that thing."

Anderson watched the exchange silently, but as Erynn walked by to leave he touched her arm, indicating with an inclination of his head that he wanted to talk. She followed him to the Port Observation room where he made sure the door closed behind them.

"Jesus Shepard" he breathed, as he looked over her scorched armor and blood smeared face. "Are you ok?"

Erynn heard the emotion in his voice and it was all she could do to bite her lip and keep herself from breaking down. He had obviously intended for her to have this opportunity to decompress, but she couldn't let the Admiral see her cry, even though she wanted nothing more than to collapse into his arms.

_Wait, What? Where did that come from Erynn?_ Shepard asked herself as she set her helmet down on the desk and began to unbuckle her arm and shoulder guards. She didn't look back at Anderson while she did this, still trying to choke back tears.

"I think so" she answered, turning her arms over and flexing her joints, finding more than a few bruises but no apparently broken bones. "I'm just worried about Kaiden."

Anderson nodded at her back, wondering if that worry extended beyond comradery and into a deeper relationship. He had known that Shepard and Alenko had been close before the events on Horizon, but it was his understanding that they had never been overtly involved with each other. Despite this he couldn't help feeling a cold shiver of…what?... jealousy?... when he had seen the emotion in her eyes as she brought Kaiden onto the ship. He had found though that those thoughts were secondary to horror he had felt while listening to the mission audio over comms. Anderson was sure he had left the impression of his fingers in the console from clutching it nervously. He had already decided that she wasn't leaving him behind on the next mission. He couldn't take the thought of not being there to protect her again.

"Admiral?"

Her voice brough him back to reality, and he realized that she had asked him to help her remove her armor chest piece.

"Oh…yeah…of course Shepard."

She still had her back to him and he pulled the rear plate free as she removed the front. Her black, formfitting jumpsuit underneath was soaked in sweat and caked with dust from the Martian atmosphere. She turned to face him and he felt compelled to swipe the dark hair back from her face, as he had done after their escape from Earth, but he tightened his grip on the armor plate instead and suggested that she might like a shower before they arrived at the Citadel.

"I'll take your armor down to the hangar bay and have Vega look it over for damage."

"Thank you, Admiral," Erynn said, sitting on the couch to remove her N7 greaves. She handed them to him and stood as he turned to leave.

"I'll see you when we've docked." The hatch closed leaving Erynn to wonder why her heart was beating faster now than it ever had on Mars.


End file.
